Airline Question

[Candlelady]

Being a relatively new flier, I have a question about planes that I'm sure someone here can answer for me.

What is an airbus? Might be a silly question, but I don't know the answer.

Thanks

 

[sgtdisney]

An Airbus is just the name of the manufacturer of the plane. Sort of like saying Boeing... The Airbus aircraft are made in Europe by a consortium of European Aircraft manufacturers. They have been in business about 25 years or so, maybe close to 30 now that I think of it.

Anyway, they make both widebody as well as narrow body aircraft. They all have 1 engine mounted on each of the wings (total of 2) like a 737 or 757 except the A340 which is a wide body and has 4 engines in total. I have flown on them a few times and the A319 and A320 are very similar to a Boeing 737 except that they are slightly wider aircraft. Airbus is also in the process of making a double decker aircraft called the A380 which will be the largest plane in the air when it is complete, holding more people than even a 747.

 

[Candlelady]

Thank you for the quick reply!

You seem to know quite a bit about planes. What in your opinion are the safest? lol, I know that's a loaded question. Sorry, but I freak out when flying and to me, it seems the bigger the plane, the safer I am. I know it's silly, but there is nothing silly about the fear I have.

 

[sgtdisney]

Candlelady, it is hard to say what is safest. I have my own personal favorites, but that is all subjective. There are statistics on which planes have a higher incidence of accidents, but again, that can be somewhat subjective. All commercial aircraft are safe and you have to remember it is always safer than driving.

Bigger isn't always better either. Here is a link to Accident rates by aircraft for some of the most common commercial jets if you are really interested. But don't let it frighten you, it is just statistics. Just remember even in the 'least safe' plane according to statistics, you are still many many times more safe then driving. I know, its an old mantra, but it really is true.

http://www.airdisaster.com/statistics/

Personally, I don't care much for the older 737s (The 200 series) and the DC-10s but both of these are older aircraft and most airlines are phasing them out for newer equipment.

 

[Candlelady]

You were correct, I should not have gone to that website!

So how do I know which 737's are the 200 series? 737's seem to have a rating of 5 which I thought was good. The 757's have a rating of 4 which is better. Now I am going to freak if I get one of those 737's. I had to have a very strong drink last evening before boarding to come home. No way can I do that early in the morning.

See what the love of Mickey can do to you? I hate flying, but I love Disney.

 

[sgtdisney]

Candlelady, most of the airlines have phased out the older 737s at this time (The 200 series) I didn't mean to scare you. The 737-200s are fine airplanes. I just am not overly fond of them because I think that they ride rougher than the newer ones. I wouldn't hesitate flying on one however if that was the choice that I had. I think America West and Southwest may still have a few 200 series 737s left. United had a bunch, but they had been phasing them out. Northwest and American don't have any that I can think of. I know Delta had some too, I think Delta Express used the 200 series exclusively.

As I said any one of those planes is infinately safer than driving.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

I love 737's, they simply are the "little engine that could", IMHO.
As Dee, an Air Force Vet, says, they have an incredible safety record. They are a 707 with two engines. As to the DC 10, there are not enough drugs in the world to get me on one.
Those safety stats are nice, but, included in them are pilot errors and other factors.

 

[Candlelady]

OK, the last two posts made me feel better. somewhat anyway.

Now for the next one lol.
Which airline do you think is the best? or safest? I've only flown on US Air.

I'm trying to get tickets for our January visit and I'm not entirely sure what constitutes a decent price. The lowest I've gotten is $739.50 for 3 adults. That's $246.50 ea. Is that good? bad? I know how to get discounts on everything but flights and it's driving me bonkers that I can't get the price down.

 

[CaliforniaDreaming]

We almost always fly USAirways (or else we fly Delta). I've flown on DC-9's, MD-80/88's. B737-300's, B737-400's, B757-200's, B767-200's, A319-100's, and A321-200's. All of those I've flown on a number of times. My favorite is the A321 (close second is the B757). I recently flew on a B737-400 that was one of the smoothest flights ever, I was amazed that a 737 could have a flight that smooth (usually the flights are a little rougher). However, the 737's could use a little more room, the leg room was a little tight.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Candlelady,
Look into Southwest air. www.southwestair.com They do fly non stop from Bradley to MCO. We use them all the time and they are GREAT!!!!! Never have a problem with leg room (find they have more seat and leg room than my next favorite, Delta).
The crew is usually quite funny and they are really a very relaxed airline with very very nice change policies.
They fly 737-300's and 737-500. You can even see pictures of the "birds" on their site.
Hope this helps.

 

[cindala]

Candlelady,
You are not alone in your fear of flying. I'm not crazy about flying either, but I always research everything to death (oops! maybe that was the wrong term to use!), and a good web site I like for information is www.airsafe.com .

Personally, I won't fly 737's or MD80's. My plane of choice is a 757 or 767. I don't fly Delta Express out of Newark anymore, because they use 737's exclusively. Our Delta flights out of LaGuardia have been on a 757. The plane is a bit larger, and the TV helps to distract and pass the time.

There are also some great tips for dealing with your fear on the above website. A good book to read is AirFrame. We you see all the checks and double checks there are in the system, you'll feel better. Also valium or xanax are also an option.

 

[sgtdisney]

Originally posted by Candlelady
Now for the next one lol.
Which airline do you think is the best? or safest? I've only flown on US Air.

Once again, that is a slippery slope.... Personally, I feel very safe on just about any American Carrier.

As Gail mentioned, many of the incidents were of no fault of the actual aircraft type or even the airline and could have been caused by any number of things including pilot error. That is why I said those statistics are really not very objective and are only a starting point for further research...